When I first started Modern Hiker, the primary hiking/blogging joke I heard (yes, there’s at least one) was that I should devote a section of the site for walks around the urban areas of L.A.
Hilarious, right?
After a while, I actually came around to like the idea – there’s a lot of history buried in the L.A. sprawl that’s worth learning about – but my free time is limited, and I need me some forests on the weekends, you know? Lucky for everyone else, author, blogger, and staircase-enthusiast Dan Koeppel is picking up the slack in a BIG way.
The project is called The Big Parade, and Dan describes it as “a community participation walk/event/performance/whatever,” that winds its way 40+ miles through cultural, historical, and strange landmarks in Los Angeles and Griffith Park over two days, including 130 staircases, a paddleboat trip across Echo Lake, an urban campout, and a marching band.
How could you NOT be interested in that?
The Big Parade is on the weekend of July 18-19, and Dan encourages anyone and everyone to join for as little or as much of the route as you want. The Parade’s web site has a developing Google Maps page for the parade route, along with helpful markers. If you’re just interested in joining for a few blocks, be sure to sign up for their Twitter page so you can keep track of where the group is.
Image from the 2007 Great L.A. Walk, another hopefully annual urban walking project.
Tags: Los Angeles, the big parade, urban camping, urban hiking, walk, walking
